Love Changes Everything
by May Solo
Summary: Part 1 in a long story... does not follow any storyline but my own... Leia tries to set her brother up with a date. Please Review!!!
1. Default Chapter Title

Disclaimer: Same thing applies. This is not mine (except Lenore Gilbert, SHE'S mine) they all belong to Georgio, King of SWville.   
Author's note: Thanks to all my readers and reviewers, especially those who helped me on the Gaeriel Captison front. I appreciate it.   
This fic is dedicated to Paul, who didn't get me hooked on Star Wars or encourage me to write fics, but who took an obsessed SW freak and turned her into a real fan.  
Words/sentences in parentenses thingys are in a different language.   
I don't intend to have very many parts to this. This is originally one long fic, but due to the restrictions of my stone-age computer, it's become a series.   
  
Welcome to my Alternate Universe. In this corner of StarWarsVille, there are no mad Empire-leftovers or Bothan Bullies trying to take over the galaxy. The characters actually have some semblance of natural lives. So enjoy.  
*********************************************************************  
Dr Lenore Gilbert was late.  
  
Her first day on the job and she was late.  
  
She'd made sure that she was awake in time to get out the door and catch the public transport train in time, but she'd taken the wrong one. By the time she'd realized her mistake she was at least 20 kilometres away from the stop she needed.   
  
It was frustrating.   
  
"Excuse me!" she shouted above the dull roar of passing trains and hurried government officals. No one answered her.  
  
"Excuse me!"   
  
No response.   
  
Crap! she thought in her native language. She pushed her way towards huge holomap of the train lines and tried to figure out where she was going.   
  
An hour later she finally made her way to the medcenter where she was employed in the obstetrics/gynocology department. She found the doctor's lounge on the eighth floor and put her things in a locker. She pulled out her labcoat and put it on, preparing for a day's work.  
  
"You the new doctor?" said a humanoid male in a white labcoat. Lenore nodded. "You're late." he offered.  
  
"Yes, I know." she said, trying hard to disguise her thick accent. The man pushed through the lounge door and Lenore followed.  
  
"What's your name?" he asked.  
  
"Lenore Gilbert." she said. He was walking very fast; Lenore had to almost run to keep up.   
  
"Tell me, Lenore. You ever meet councilor Leia Organa Solo?"  
  
The question caught her off-guard. Her family was very wealthy and Lenore had met several people off relative importance on her homeworld. But never anyone of galactic importance such as Councilor Organa Solo. "Uh... no..."  
  
"Well, you're about to." he said. They'd reached an examination room and the male doctor pushed the door open for her. Inside on the bed sat Leia Organa Solo herself. A man sat next to her in a chair, presumably her husband Han Solo. Lenore stopped just inside the door, realized she was staring, and forced herself to act natural.  
  
"Hello Leia, I'm Dr Rejkavijk, and this is Dr Gilbert..." he said.  
  
"Dr Jee-bert," Lenore interuppted, correcting his bad pronunciation.   
  
Dr Rejkavijk stopped and stared at her. "Are you through?" he asked. Lenore nodded. "Good." He turned to Leia. "How are you feeling?"  
  
"Fine," she said.  
  
"Good. I'll be leaving now, but Dr Gilbert will be taking over." he said.  
  
"Me?" Lenore asked.  
  
"Yes, you. Try not to screw up, okay?" Dr Rejkavijk said as he left the room.   
  
Lenore watched him leave with her mouth hanging open. She'd just graduated from medical school, and while she was fully qualified to carry on an examination by herself, she'd never actually done so before. Her stomach became lead as she slowly turned to face the patient. Lenore smiled at her, more to reassure herself than the patient.   
  
"I have a bad feeling about this." said Han.   
  
"Me too." said Leia.  
  
Lenore picked up a datapad with the patient's medical status on it. "Um... how far along are you?" she asked.  
  
"Three months." Leia said.  
  
"Have you had an ultrasound?"   
  
"No."  
  
"Do you want one?" Lenore asked.  
  
"Sure." said Leia.   
  
"Okay, I'll be right back." Lenore said, and she left the room.  
=============================================  
Leia waited until the young doctor left the room, then turned to her husband. "She's obviously new."   
  
Han looked at her. "I'm sure they'd get you another doctor if you asked. I mean, I'm sure she's qualified, but are you sure she's the best?"  
  
"No, give her another chance. She's probably nervous. She'll be better when she gets back. I'd rather have her, anyway, than that idiot that came in here first." she said.  
  
Han laughed. "Yeah, he was a jerk."  
  
"Do you think she'd be good for Luke?"  
  
It took Han a minute to process that last comment. "What do you mean, good for Luke?"  
  
"Well, she's young, apparantly unattached, nice..."   
  
"Honestly, Leia. I'm sure neither Luke nor this chick want to be set up by you. Besides, you don't even know her. She could be a mass murderer, for all you know." Han answered.  
  
"They wouldn't give her a medical license if she was a serial killer, Han."  
  
"How do you know she even has one?! She could've lied!"  
  
Leia gave him a look that said, this conversation's gone too far. At that moment Dr Gilbert came back in with a large machine that looked very, very expensive.   
  
"Hi," said the doctor, smiling.  
  
"Hi," said Leia.   
  
"If you would just lay back for a minute..." said Dr Gilbert. Leia complied.  
  
"So, what's your first name?" Leia asked.  
  
"Lenore." said Dr Gilbert, trying to figure out how to turn the thing on.   
  
"Hm. That's cool. First day?" asked Leia.   
  
"Yes." said a very preoccupied Lenore. She finally figured out the big machine. She steered the viewstick across Leia's belly.   
  
"Where are you from?" asked Leia.  
  
"Amontillado. I just moved here a week ago."   
  
"That's great! Are you doing anything this weekend?" Leia asked casually.  
  
"Uh... no..." Lenore said, taken aback.   
  
"Wonderful, cause they're having this huge sale at this shopping center and I was wondering if you'd like to go with me."   
  
"Sure." replied Lenore. Just then the ultrasound picked up a small picture of a baby. Lenore smiled. "There it is."   
  
Leia smiled. Han reached over and squeezed her hand. He seemed to notice something on the picture and squinted at it.   
  
"Uh, is that an extra arm?" he asked Lenore.   
  
Lenore peered at the screen. "That's odd." she said, and moved the viewstick. A second baby came into view.   
  
"Do you realize you're having twins?" Lenore said, smiling.   
=====================================  
Leia's feet hurt.   
  
They'd been shopping all day. Sale after sale after sale... it was incredible. Leia and Lenore had arrived at the shopping center at 1000 hours that day, and finally, at 1500 hours, they had been to every single store in the mall.   
  
She collapsed into the driver's seat of her landspeeder, and Lenore sat shotgun. "I've never seen so many sales in my life," said Lenore.  
  
"Yeah, it was great!" Leia answered. "Oh, hey, I left this datapad I really need at my brother's apartment, do you mind if we stop and get it while I take you home? He lives right by you." she said.   
  
"Sure."   
  
In all actuality, Luke's apartment was nowhere near Lenore's, but Leia was not about to tell Lenore that. She had been scheming all week on how to get them together, and this was the best she'd come up with. Finally they arrived at Luke's place.   
  
"I'll wait here," Lenore said as Leia climbed out of the speeder.   
  
Leia paused. "Uh, no, why don't you come up? It's awfully hot here in the speeder, and it'll only take a second." she fibbed.  
  
"Okay, fine." Lenore said as she opened the passenger door of the speeder and stepped out. They rode the lift in near silence.   
  
"I think you'll like him," Leia offered.  
  
"Hm." said Lenore.  
  
More silence.  
  
"He's real nice," she said again.  
  
"Mmm." said Lenore.  
  
After what seemed like an eternity, the lift doors opened. Leia led Lenore across the hallway to Luke's door. She knocked.  
  
No answer.  
  
"Luke?" she called.  
  
Nothing.   
  
"I don't think he's home." Lenore said.  
  
Leia sighed. She'd purposely left her datapad here so she had a reason to bring Lenore. She fumbled through her purse for her keycard. Leia swiped it through the lock and the door slid open. They stepped inside.  
  
Her datapad lay on the table where she'd left it. Luke probably hadn't even noticed she'd left it.   
  
"Nice apartment." Lenore commented. Leia didn't answer. She grabbed the datapad and walked towards the door.   
  
She'd have to think of something else.   
======================================  
On the way back to Lenore's apartment, it came to her.   
  
"Hey, we're having a little dinner party next week. Wanna come?" she asked.  
  
"Uh, sure. Who all is coming?" Lenore asked.  
  
"Oh, just some friends. And Luke." Leia replied.  
  
"Cool. Can I bring a friend?"  
  
A friend? A FRIEND? Of course she couldn't bring a friend, she was supposed to fall in love with Luke! "Of course you can! Bring two friends if you want!" Leia asked. She mentally kicked herself as she pulled the speeder up in front of Lenore's building.   
  
"Thank you. I had a fun time today." Lenore said.   
  
"Sure, anytime. I'll call you later. Bye!" Leia said as she drove off.   
  
I'll just have to try harder, Leia thought.  
====================================  
As soon as she got in the door of her apartment Lenore made a beeline for the com booth. This Leia chick was nice and all, but it was very obvious that she was trying to set Lenore up with her brother. Why couldn't he get his own girlfriends? He was probably disturbed or something. Lenore couldn't afford to mess around with people who weren't serious, and blind dates were never serious.  
  
She dialed up her brother Adrick. When he answered, she smiled at him. "Hello Adrick!"  
  
"Lenore!" he answered. "How are you?"  
  
"Good, thank you." she said. "I need a favor. Are you doing anything next week?"  
  
"Playing boloball, driving my speeder around picking up girls, but other than that, no not really," Adrick said. "Why?"  
  
"I'm in desperate need of your help." Lenore said. "I made this friend, and she's trying to hook me up with her brother."  
  
"That's wonderful! However I don't understand why you need me. I think you could use a date or two."   
  
Lenore glared at him. "I don't want to go out with her brother. He's probably a serial killer or something."  
  
Adrick laughed. "What's your friend's name? Do I know her?"   
  
"Probably not. She's a patient of mine, Leia Organa Solo."  
  
Adrick's eyes got huge. "You're kidding. Leia Organa Solo, the Councilwoman? The same Leia Organa that was so heavy in their Rebellion?"   
  
"Yes, the same."  
  
"But isn't her brother Luke Skywalker? The guy who blew up the Death Star and killed Darth Vader?" he asked.  
  
"See what I mean? He's a serial killer and I don't want to go with him!"  
  
Adrick stared at her. "Come on, Lenore dear. You've never even met him."  
  
"Well, Leia's giving a dinner party next week and I've been invited. He's going to be at the party and I just know she's going to set us up. Please come with me?" Lenore begged.  
  
Adrick laughed again. "Sure. But I'm not going to pretend to be your boyfriend again."  
  
"Did anybody ask you too?"  
  
He smiled. "See ya later, dear."  
  
"Bye." Lenore said as she broke the connection. She sighed. The last thing she wanted right now was to be hooked up with somebody's brother.   
=========================================  
"We're having a dinner party next week." Leia said to her husband when she got home.   
  
"Oh we are?" he asked. "Since when?"  
  
"Since fifteen minutes ago. Who do we know who could come?" Leia asked.   
  
"Uh... nobody. Too bad." Han said.   
  
"Not that easy, Han. What about Wedge Antilles? Do ya think he'd like to come?"  
  
"Leia, do we have to have this dinner party?" Han asked, obviously not overjoyed at the idea.   
  
"Yes, we do. I've already invited Lenore. We have to have it now. Mon Mothma would be a nice addition, don't you think? I'll call her. What about Ackbar?"  
  
"You're just having this so you can hook up Luke."   
  
"Bingo!" Leia said as she crossed the front room towards the com booth. She sat down and dialed up her brother.   
  
After a long while he answered. "Yes?"   
  
"Hi Luke. I was just at your apartment but you weren't there. Where were you?" she asked.  
  
"Out." he replied.  
  
"Obviously. I'm having a dinner party next week. Do you wanna come?"  
  
He smiled. "Depends. Who's coming?"   
  
"Well, I haven't invited anybody yet. But I'm going to invite Wedge Antilles, Mon Mothma, Admiral Ackbar, a friend of mine,"- Han snickered behind her. She shot him a glare- "and some of the councilmembers. It'll be real fun. Please say you'll come!"   
  
He sighed. "Okay, fine. Maybe I can come for a little while."  
  
"Thanks Luke. See ya then." Leia said, and disconnected.   
  
"A friend of yours. Sure." Han said sarcastically.   
  
"Oh Han, give it a rest, will you?" she said. Han laughed and kissed her.   
=======================================  
The night of the party Lenore rushed around after work trying to get ready. As she was putting on her earrings, her com beeped. She rushed to get it.   
  
Her brother appeared on screen. "Hey Lenore!" he said.   
  
"Adrick! Where are you?" she asked.   
  
"Lenore my dear, I'm afraid I can't come to your party tonight. I've got a prior engagement with a beautiful person I met in a bar at the spaceport. She's really something." Adrick said.   
  
Lenore groaned. "Thanks alot Adrick! I was counting on you to help me."  
  
"I guess you'll just have to fend for yourself for once. I'll come by before I leave tomorrow to see you. Bye Lenore!" Adrick said as he disconnected.   
  
Damn. Lenore thought.   
=======================================  
Leia's party fell apart at the last minute.   
  
None of the councilmembers she'd invited had been able to come. This afternoon as she left her office, Mon Mothma caught her and told her that an important meeting had come up, and she and Ackbar would not be able to attend. Five minutes ago Wedge Antilles had called to say Rogue Squadron had been activated and he'd be unable to attend. Han and Chewie had gone out with the Rogues to "work on some techniques." Leia thought it was just an excuse to get away.   
  
So here she was, frantically trying to entertain Lenore Gilbert while waiting for her brother to show up. Thankfully Lenore's friend had also backed out.   
  
"So, Lenore, how are things at the medcenter?" Leia asked for the sake of conversation.   
  
"Oh... they're good... Leia dear, what's burning?" Lenore asked as she smelled the air.  
  
"Burning?" Leia repeated, and then smelled it herself. "Oh crap! My roast!"   
  
They ran into the kitchen and threw open the oven. Sure enough, flames engulfed Leia's roast, the one she was planning to serve for dinner. Leia grabbed the fire extinguisher and sprayed the fire until it died in a puff of smoke.   
  
They stood watching the burned dinner for a long time. Leia felt like crying. This dinner party had been a bad idea from the get-go.   
  
Beside her, Lenore started to laugh. Leia turned to face her. She was about to tell Lenore off, but when Leia opened her mouth she found herself laughing.   
  
The com beeped. "I'll get it." Leia said, still giggling. She answered with a large smile on her face. It was Luke. "Hey Luke! Where are you?"   
  
"Oh, I'm around." he said.   
  
"Uh-huh. Why aren't you here?"  
  
"Cause I can't come. Busy."   
  
Leia's smile turned into a frown. "Luke! I was counting on you! Can't you get off? Just come for a second, okay?"  
  
"I can't, Leia, okay? You've got other people there. Talk to them." Luke said.   
  
"Well... they kinda backed out. It's just my friend and I."  
  
"Uh-huh. I'm still not coming."  
  
"Why not?"   
  
"Cause you're trying to set me up and I don't want to be set up. I can get my own dates, thank you very much."   
  
"How did you know that?"  
  
"Come now, Leia. When have you ever had a friend you haven't tried to set me up with?" Luke said, grinning.  
  
Leia sighed. "Fine. You don't know what you're missing."   
  
"Yes I do. I'm missing a burned dinner, probably roast, leftover Corellian Whiskey, probably old and bitter, I'm missing you trying to make conversation, and a seriously twisted 'friend' of yours staring at me the whole time. I'll pass."  
  
"Goodbye Luke." Leia said, in an effort to end the conversation.  
  
"Bye."   
  
Leia made her way back to the kitchen. Lenore had made good use of time. The burned roast was in the trash and water was boiling on the stove. Lenore stood at the counter slicing vegetables. "What are you making?" Leia asked.  
  
"Pasta. We'd better have something to eat. Who called?" Lenore said.  
  
Leia took a sliced vegetable and ate it. "My brother. He can't come." she answered.  
  
Lenore smiled. "Neither could mine."  
  
"What do you mean?" asked Leia, genuinely puzzled.  
  
"My brother. I asked you if I could bring a friend, and I was going to bring my brother Adrick, but he decided he'd rather spend his time with someone he met at a bar rather than go to a dinner party with his little sister. Sucks, doesn't it?"  
  
Leia smiled. "Yeah."   
  
"Why couldn't he come?"   
  
"He thinks I'm trying to set you up. Where would he get a crazy idea like that?"   
  
Lenore laughed. "From you. I mean, you obviously are trying to set us up. 'I just need to stop by and get something from my brother's. You'll like him, he's real nice.' Come on, Leia. I'm not stupid, that's a genuine setup."  
  
Leia frowned in embarrassment. "I didn't think it would be that obvious."  
  
"It was, dear, it was." Lenore said as she dished up some pasta and handed the plate to Leia.   
======================================  
Several hours later, as Leia and Lenore were entrenched in a hot game of Sabacc, the doorbell rang.   
  
"I'll get it." Lenore said. She rose from the table. "Hey! No cheating!"   
  
Leia threw her an innocent look. "Cheating? ME? The very idea!" She hurried to replace the card she'd removed from the deck.   
  
"Yeah, yeah, yeah, you were cheating and you know it." Lenore pressed a button by the door and it slid open. She almost gasped-- almost. The man standing at the door was rather good-looking. He stood just a little taller than her, with sandy-blond hair, and blue eyes so deep you could swim in them. He had a simple air about him, as if he didn't want anybody to notice him, which only served to make him more handsome.   
  
Lenore hesitated. "Um... may I help you?"  
  
"Yeah, I'm looking for--" he began.  
  
"About damn time you showed up." Leia yelled from the table. "Where have you been?"  
  
"I was working!" he said, entering the apartment.   
  
"Sure. We're just playin' some Sabacc. I'm winning, for once." Leia said, smiling.   
  
"Only because you cheat." said Lenore.   
  
Leia gave her another innocent look. "Veally, Lenore der, yu musn't make accusazations ven you know good and vell yu vere doing ze esact same ting." Leia said, mocking Lenore's thick accent.   
  
"Don't mock me."   
  
The man ignored their banter and took a seat at the table next to Leia. "Deal me in," he said.   
  
"Be patient." said Leia. "Lenore, I'd like you to meet my brother Luke; Luke, this is my friend Lenore Gilbert."   
  
"Nice to meet you." Luke said.   
  
Lenore gave a tight smile. "Charmed." Leia laughed. "What?" Lenore asked defensivly.  
  
"Nothing. Sit down and play your cards!"   
  
"Picky picky picky." said Luke mischeivously.  
  
"Shutup Luke. Do you want to play or not?"   
  
"See how she treats me?" Luke asked Lenore. "Here I come all the way down here, when I have work to do, and she treats me like crap. Now is that any way to treat someone doing you a favor, Leia?" he grinned. Lenore decided she loved his grin.   
  
"You're not doing me any favors." Leia said.   
  
"Yes I am! Who was it that called me last week and just BEGGED me to come to this party? 'Oh please, Luke, you have to come! You must!' "  
  
Leia dealt the cards. "That was someone else."  
  
Luke laughed. Lenore smiled. Leia had a very differant relationship with Luke than Lenore had with her brother. It was downright funny.   
  
Just then the door opened, and Leia's husband came in. "Hey," he said.   
  
"Hey Han. Get over here, we need a fourth player." Leia said to her husband.   
  
Han raised his eyebrows. "What are you playing?"  
  
"Two screwing rats." Luke said. They looked at him.   
  
"Huh?" Han said.  
  
"Oh, sorry, Sabacc." said Luke, giving yet another grin.   
  
Lenore laughed. "Where did you get 'Two Screwing Rats?' "  
  
"I dunno, it just came to me."   
  
"Now we know what's on Luke's mind." Leia joked.   
  
They played round after round of Sabacc. Han won, of course, being the resident Sabacc genious. By 2330h that evening, Lenore found herself at least 30 credits poorer.   
  
Han had just dealt another round when Lenore realized the time. "Oh, I have to go!" she exclaimed. She stood up and grabbed her jacket.   
  
"Awww, now we have to deal again." Leia teased.   
  
Lenore smiled at her. "I'd love to stay, but unless you want to work my shift at the medcenter at 0730h tomorrow morning, I should probably go home."   
  
"You just don't want to lose anymore." Han said.  
  
"That, too. Leia, thank you for having me, it was fun." said Lenore.  
  
"Ah, sure. Sorry about the roast." Leia answered.  
  
"I knew you were gonna burn that roast." said Luke.   
  
"Shutup." Leia said, and kicked him under the table. "I'll call you, okay?" she said to Lenore.  
  
"Fine. I won't be home until late. I have to work and my brother's in town. See ya!" Lenore said, as she left.   
  
"Bye." she heard Leia call.   
====================================  
"Hey, wait up!"   
  
Lenore turned. She was two and a half blocks away from Leia's apartment, on her way to the public transport stop. At first she didn't see who called her.   
  
Then she saw him. Leia's brother Luke, running to meet her. She laughed. "What are you doing?"   
  
"Trying to catch you. You walk fast." he said as he approached her. "Where are you going?"  
  
"Home! It's late, I'm tired, I have to make sure my brother doesn't bring any bar scum home." she said.   
  
He grinned, and Lenore's heart fluttered. "Bar scum?" Luke asked.   
  
"Yeah, he can't pick anybody up at home, because they all ask him for money. Whenever he comes to Coruscant, he finds the seedest underground bars and picks up the most revolting females. It makes me sick."  
  
"Funny. You weren't planning to take the public trains, were you?" he asked.   
  
Lenore looked at him. "Yes..." she said slowly. "Why?"  
  
"Oh, nothing, just they stopped running forty-five minutes ago." he said.  
  
Lenore swore. "Isn't this just typical?!?" She sighed. "How am I going to get home? I live forty blocks away!"  
  
"Well, see, it's this highly complicated process of raising your arm and waving a taxi." Luke said. He demonstrated, and a speeder pulled up. A strange-looking droid sat in the driver's seat. Luke opened the door for her.   
  
"Thanks." Lenore said, climbing in the speeder. Luke climbed in after her. They sat in silence a minute.   
  
The droid turned his creaking torso around to face them. "Where can I take you, kind patrons? Anywhere in the Congressional District, 5 credits a stop."  
  
Lenore continued staring out her window. Luke nudged her with his elbow. "Uh... Lenore, I forgot to mention... the droid isn't psychic."  
  
"What?"  
  
"You have to tell him where you live." Luke reminded her.   
  
"Oh!" Lenore exclaimed, feeling very stupid. She gave the droid her address, and the speeder started moving.   
  
She kept looking out the window for a good five minutes, unable to think of anything to say. Finally Luke broke the silence. "So, what do you do?"  
  
"Beg your pardon?"   
  
He smiled. "Where do you work?"  
  
Lenore blushed. "I'm a doctor at Good Hope Medcenter."  
  
"Cool. What kinda doctor?" asked Luke.  
  
"Um... human obstetrics."   
  
"Oh. That explains how you know Leia."   
  
"Yes, she's my first patient."   
  
Luke laughed. "I bet that makes her feel REAL good."  
  
"Well, what I mean is, I've done it before, but never on my own." she explained. Luke kept laughing. Lenore decided it was time to change the subject before she embarrassed herself further. "Um, what do you do?"  
  
"Nothing really. Sometimes the Council calls me up and says, 'Hey, we've got this problem, will you go fix it for us?' or 'You're so smart, will you come give us your wonderful advice?', but on a day-to-day basis, I don't really do anything." Luke said.  
  
"Then what were you doing that made you so late?" asked Lenore, genuinly puzzled.  
  
"I wasn't doing anything. I just didn't want to go to Leia's party. I knew she was going to burn that roast. She always does."  
  
Lenore smiled. "I wouldn't say it was so much burned as charred to a crisp. I ended up making pasta."  
  
He laughed again. "If the fate of humanity rested on Leia's ability to heat a frozen dinner, we'd all be doomed. She'd still burn it."  
  
The speeder arrived at Lenore's building much too soon. The droid who was driving creaked his rusty torso around to face them. "First stop-- five credits. If you wish me to wait, it will be an extra 15."   
  
Lenore dug through her purse. "I'm sorry, Luke, I don't have any five-cred pieces, I think Han won them all."   
  
"That's alright, I'll get it." he said. "What floor are you on?"  
  
"Ninteen." she said as she climbed out onto the street.  
  
"Cool. I'll see ya later." Luke said, as the speeder left her standing on the lonely, dark street.  
  
"Bye," she called.  
=======================================  
A month passed.  
  
Lenore found herself extremely busy, with hardly any time to herself. Because the medcenter paid its newest employees a meagar wage, Lenore had taken an extra job at a nearby bar to make a little extra money. Her days were filled with pregnant women and her nights were filled with drunk males of nearly every species known.  
  
One particularly busy day, Lenore happened to be walking through the waiting room at the medcenter on her way to a much-cherished break. The person sitting in a waiting room chair, with his feet on the holozine table and his eyes closed, was none other than Luke Skywalker.   
  
She smiled, then went over to him and sat down. Without opening his eyes, he said, "Hey Lenore."  
  
She started. "How did you know it was me?"  
  
He gave her a grin. "You have a very distinct Force-presence." he said, then almost as an afterthought, "And also, your shoes squeak."  
  
She put her feet on the table next to his, leaned her head back, and sighed very audibly. Luke opened his eyes. "Tired?" he asked.  
  
"Very."  
  
"Well, you shouldn't be going to all those swingin' parties, Lenore. A responsible doctor like you should know that." he said sarcastically.  
  
She grinned. "Yeah, sure. Note to self: find some swingin' parties to cut back on."  
  
Luke laughed. "Are they keeping you busy?"  
  
"Who, the medcenter? Yes, terribly."  
  
"I'm sorry. I'd offer to help, but I don't think your superiors would like that very much." he said.  
  
"No, probably not."   
  
"Speaking of tonight..." Luke began.  
  
Lenore raised her eyebrows. "Were we?"  
  
"No, I just thought I'd say that. What are you doing tonight?"  
  
Lenore sighed again. "Working."   
  
Luke looked at her incredulously. "How long have you been working?"  
  
"Oh, not here. I work at a bar part-time." she said. They sat in silence for a moment. "Hey," Lenore began, "What are you doing here?"  
  
Luke smiled. "Why do you think I'm here?"  
  
"I don't know!"  
  
He laughed. "I'm pregnant, and I've come to have my baby." She kicked him. "I'm just kidding!" he said. "Han's all the way across the planet and Leia didn't want to come alone, so being the nice person I am, I brought her."   
  
"Leia has an appointment today?" she asked. Luke nodded. "With whom?"  
  
"You! She's your next appointment. She's in the bathroom." Luke answered.  
  
"Och!" exclaimed Lenore, slapping the palm of her hand to her forehead. "I forgot! I better go get a room ready." She rose to leave.  
  
"Hey, wait a second." Luke said, taking hold of her wrist and preventing her from leaving. "If you're busy tonight, what are you doing tomorrow night?"  
  
"My laundry," she answered.  
  
He laughed again. "Will your clothes be offended if you go with me?"  
  
"Yes! I won't have anything to wear!" she said.  
  
Luke smiled and shook his head. "Which laundramat?" he asked.  
  
"What?"  
  
"Which laudramat?" he repeated.  
  
"The one on the corner, level 23, by my apartment." she answered.  
  
"Cool. Meet ya there at 1900h."  
  
"Luke! You can't come to the laundramat with me!"  
  
"Why not?"  
  
"Because it's boring, there will be nothing to do!" she said. "You'll be so bored, you'll never want to see me again!"  
  
"Well, we'll see about that." he said.   
  
"I really have to go now, Luke." said Lenore.  
  
He let go of her wrist. "Who's stopping you?" he asked, smiling.   
  
She smiled back and left the waiting room.  
=====================================  
Lenore was very nervous the next evening.   
  
Rushing home from the medcenter, she found herself worrying. Should she dress up? --should she stay casual? Was it a date?  
  
No, she reasoned. Dates didn't take you to the laundramat.   
  
She arrived at her apartment at 1830h and keyed the lock. The door slid open and she rushed inside, kicking off her shoes and socks. Lenore went to the kitchen and opened the refrigerator and stared into it, looking for some dinner.  
  
The clean white shelves stared right back. Inside was a carton of milk and some butter.   
  
'Impossible.' she thought. 'I can't be so busy that I don't have time to go grocery-shopping.' Lenore thought back over her week, finding to her dismay that most of her meals had indeed been eaten in the cafeteria at the medcenter.  
  
Yuck.  
  
Lenore dug around her kitchen for a while before she finally found some cereal. She put this in a bowl and poured milk over it, and ate it. When she was finished, she put the bowl in the sink and went to her bedroom.  
  
She crossed the bedroom to her closet and opened the doors. After staring at her wardrobe for five full minutes, she finally selected a pair of black slacks and a yellow shirt with a V-neck and 3/4 sleeves. She quickly put these on.   
  
Lenore went back into the kitchen and retrieved a black trashbag from underneath the sink. She returned to her bedroom and began emptying the laundry hamper into the trashbag. Halfway through this task, a thought struck her. While transporting her laundry to and fro in a black bag was practical, it sure wasn't very classy. Lenore stood in her bedroom thinking about this. She went back to the closet and removed her suitcase. Setting it on the bed, she proceeded to empty the bag into the suitcase.  
  
Another thought came to her. When she opened the suitcase, her dirty laundry would be laying there for everyone in the Administrative District to see. Lenore sat down on the edge of her bed and pondered this for a minute before placing the laundry back into the bag, and then laying the bag inside the suitcase.   
  
She carried the suitcase out and set it by the door, and glanced at the chrono. Eighteen forty-five, it read. Five minutes until she had to leave.  
  
Lenore sat down at her kitchen table and drummed her fingers upon it. She couldn't be too early. There wasn't really anything for her to do here. Her com booth ran slowly, so by the time she accessed the newsgrids it would be time to leave. No point in doing that. Her holoprojector was broken, so she couldn't watch the programmes. She sat there for a few minutes.  
  
Eighteen forty-six.  
  
Her stomach growled. The cereal hadn't filled her up, but she didn't have anything else to eat.   
  
Eighteen forty-seven.   
  
Lenore glanced down, and abruptly realized she hadn't put her shoes on or done her hair. She rushed into the bathroom and looked in the mirror. Not bad, but her hair shouldn't just hang there like spaghetti. She grabbed two hairsticks and put it into a bun.  
  
Now for her shoes. She returned to the bedroom and opened up her sock drawer.  
  
One solitary sock stared back at her.   
  
Lenore swore and began searching her bedroom for its mate. Five minutes later she still hadn't found it. She thought back to the socks she'd taken off when she'd arrived, all wet and sweaty, still in the front room. The thought of putting them back on sent chills up her spine.   
  
She left the bedroom, went over to where her shoes lay, and pulled them over her feet, without socks. She grabbed the suitcase, turned out the lights, and left.  
  
Lenore rode the lift down to ground level and ran along the street to the corner building. Her feet slid around inside her shoes, making her skin crawl. She finally arrived at the laundramat. Through the transparasteel storefront, she could see Luke sitting on top of the dryers, eating something. She pushed open the transparasteel doors and entered the laundramat.  
  
"Hey!" Luke called as she crossed the store to him. "I got you a hamburger."   
  
"Oh, thanks," she said. "Have you been here long?"  
  
"Naw, not really." he said as he jumped off the dryer he was sitting on, and went over to her at the washers. Lenore set her suitcase on top of them, pulled out the trashbag, and began emptying the contents into a nearby washing machine. Luke helped her, laughing.  
  
"What are you laughing at?" she demanded.  
  
"Do you always carry your laundry around in suitcases?"  
  
"Well, no, not really..." Lenore answered. They finished loading the washing machine. Lenore stuck a credit piece in the slot, set the dial, and the machine roared to life.   
  
Luke jumped up on the next washer and sat cross-legged on it. Lenore did the same. She unwrapped her hamburger and began to eat it.   
  
"What did you do today?" he asked, putting a frenchfry in his mouth.  
  
"Oh... three check-ups and a delivery..." she said between bites. "You?"  
  
"Not much." He pulled a small rectangular box from his pocket. "Wanna play cards?"  
**********************************************************************  
  
Okay, I know this ends kinda abruptly, but my computer won't let me write anymore on this file. Piece of crap!!!!   
  
Please, please, please review! Let me know if you liked it, or if you hated it. Please keep flames to yourself. John Lennon said "All you need is Love," and flames don't exactly qualify as love. So be nice.  
  
Part 2 coming up!!!  
  
Copyright 2000 by May Solo.   
  
  
  



	2. Default Chapter Title

Disclaimer: Blah, blah, blah, George-o Lucas, blah blah blah, he owns Star Wars. Blah, blah, no money being made, blah. Please don't sue blah blah blah.  
  
This picks up where 'Love Changes Everything' left off. So, it's kinda imperative that you read 'Love Changes Everything' before you read this.   
  
To Paul, for helping me become a true fan. Also to Kathy Tyres (sp?) for writing "Balance Point" and making me extremely happy!!!  
  
*****************************************************  
Coruscant, Southeast Administrative District, 2415h.  
  
Han Solo wandered around the twenty-third level of a commercial building, in search of the 200-flavor ice-cream store advertised outside the building. Surely they'd have the kind Leia wanted.  
  
Leia's eating habits during her pregnancy were bizzare. Yesterday in the middle of their lunch break, she'd announced that the only thing she could keep down was a zambizi-flavored milkshake topped with squid. The day before it had been g'fagen beans. Now Leia had woken up just dying for a Peanut Butter Pickle ice-cream.  
  
Who ate Peanut Butter Pickle, anyway?  
  
Han rounded a corner, and the ice-cream store's neon green sign called to him like a beacon, making his pace quicken. He almost ran to the store. His joy was crushed, however, when he noticed through the transparasteel windows that the lights in the store were off. A sign on the door said the store closed at 2300h.   
  
He sighed, closed his eyes, turned around and leaned on the storefront. He had been to just about every ice-cream store in the district. Those that were still open gave him looks of disgust when he asked for Peanut Butter Pickle ice-cream.   
  
Slowly, Han opened his eyes. Across the corridor was a twenty-four hour laundramat. The only beings in there were a rusted-out droid and two humanoids sitting upon a row of washing machines, apparantly having a great deal of fun. Han had to look twice before he recognised one of the humans as his brother-in-law Luke.   
  
What was Luke doing at a laundramat in the middle of the night? Han crossed the corridor and entered the laundramat. Luke saw him coming. "Hi Han!" he yelled. Han forced a smile. It was late, he was tired.   
  
"Want a fry?" Luke asked him. Han shook his head and regarded the scene in front of him. On a washing-machine between Luke and the unidentified female lay several scattered playing cards, hamburger wrappers, a few frenchfrys, and ketchup stains here and there.   
  
The woman lay back on the washing machines so she could see him. "Hey!" she said. "I know you!"   
  
Han instantly recognized her as Lenore Gilbert, Leia's obstetrician. "Hello," he said slowly. "What are you two doing?"  
  
"My laundry," she answered. "It's dirty."   
  
"Do you always do your laundry in the middle of the night?" he asked.  
  
Lenore and Luke exchanged puzzled looks. "What do you mean?" Luke asked.  
  
"It's 2415h!" Han exclaimed.  
  
Lenore put a hand over her mouth and laughed. Luke smiled. "I guess your laundry's done," he said to Lenore. She jumped off the machines and ran to a nearby dryer. Grabbing a suitcase that lay on the floor, she threw the contents of the dryer into her suitcase. Luke began arranging the cards in front of him. "So Han," he began. "What brings you out here at 2415h?"  
  
Han grimaced. "Leia wants ice-cream. Nobody has the kind she wants."   
  
"Really? What kind does she want?" Lenore called from the general vicinity of the dryers.   
  
"She wants the most disgusting, impossible to find ice-cream in the whole galaxy. Peanut Butter Pickle." Han answered.  
  
Luke stared at him in disbelief. "YUCK!" he yelled.  
  
"You're kidding! I love Peanut Butter Pickle! It's my favorite kind of ice-cream. I have a fresh carton at home." Lenore answered.  
  
"YUCK!" Luke yelled.  
  
"Where did you get it?!?" Han asked desperately.  
  
"The store across the way. They're closed now, but you can have mine if you want."   
  
"YUCK YUCK DOUBLE YUCK PUKE MY GUTS OUT YUCK!" Luke yelled. From a desk near the front, the droid gave them the nastiest look possible of a droid.   
  
Han ignored both Luke and the droid. "Thank you a million times over."   
  
She shrugged. "No problem. I'm going home now, so if you want it, come on." She walked towards the exit with Luke and Han on her heels.   
  
"YUCK!" Luke yelled once more for the record.  
====================================================  
"Here it is!" Lenore exclaimed, pulling the frosty carton from the empty deep freeze. "The best ice-cream in the entire galaxy."  
  
"You're crazy." said Luke, leaning against a countertop.  
  
Han took the carton from her. "Thank you a million times over."  
  
"No problem." she answered. "Tell Leia hi for me."  
  
"I will." Han yelled from the front room, on his way out the door.   
  
"BYE HAN!" Luke yelled.  
  
"BYE LUKE!" Han yelled equally as loud. They heard the front door close behind him.  
  
"I can't believe you like that stuff." Luke said.  
  
"What do you have against Peanut Butter Pickle?" she asked him.  
  
"Well, it's not the peanut butter, and it's not the pickle--"  
  
"Then stop making fun of it!"  
  
"--it's more the combination of the two that makes it absolutly disgusting!" he finished.   
  
She rolled her eyes. "I happen to like it, thank you very much."  
  
Luke laughed. "Okay, whatever floats your boat."  
  
She smiled. "I'm not being rude, I would offer you something to eat, but unless you like cold cereal in the middle of the night, I haven't got anything."  
  
"You don't have any food?" he asked incredulously.  
  
"No, I was going to go get some but I haven't had time."  
  
"Let's go now." he suggested.  
  
"Now?"  
  
"Yeah, now."   
  
Lenore stared at him. "You're crazy. Everything is closed."   
  
"No, there's a place around here somewhere that's open, and I think there's a couple others around the district. Come on, it'll be fun!"  
  
She sighed. "Alright."  
==========================================  
They were the only people in the store.  
  
Yet another rusted droid sat behind a cash register. (Didn't anybody keep their droids in repair?) Another poorly maintained droid waxed the tile floor on a different aisle. Luke and Lenore pushed a hovercart down a well-lit, bland aisle, searching for a suitable bag of Usa spears.  
  
Lenore stood staring at a sack of Medmoy Usa spears. "New, Low-fat spears with Wonderful Flavor!" the bag advertised.   
  
She threw them in the cart. Who cared how much fat they had as long as they were cheap and tasted good? "What next?" Luke asked her.  
  
"Ummm... Eliva beans."  
  
"Kay..." They pushed the cart over to the aisle with the floor-waxing droid.   
  
"Isn't it just typical that they're all the way at the end of the aisle?" she asked, not really expecting an answer.  
  
"I'll race you down there." Luke challenged.   
  
Normally, Lenore would have argued, saying they'd get thrown out. Considering the late hour and the long day she'd had, she agreed.  
  
"Mark... Set... GO!" Luke called, and they took off top-speed down the aisle. Lenore wasn't exactly the athletic type, and naturally Luke was winning. They dodged the droid. She pushed herself just a little bit farther, started gaining on him. Suddenly Luke's feet flew out from under him and he tumbled to the floor. Lenore did her best to stop herself, but the freshly-waxed tile floor prevented her and she slid into him and toppled over.   
  
"Oh dear... are you okay?" she asked. He started laughing and nodded his head. Lenore couldn't help herself and started laughing just as hard as him. They sat there for a good three minutes, just laughing.  
  
Finally Luke calmed down enough, stood up, and offered her his hands. She grabbed them and started to pull herself up.   
  
Fate and the slick tile floor prevented her. Lenore lost her footing and fell down again, pulling Luke on top of her. They immediatly stopped laughing. "Uh..." she began.   
  
He stared down at her, probing her with those beautiful blue eyes...  
  
He was so close...  
  
Before she knew it he was kissing her, soft and gentle. Lenore's heart raced. She wished she had the power to stretch time, and make the moment last longer than it did. All too soon he rolled off her and stood up. "Let's try this again." he said, and again held out his hands. Lenore grabbed them and pulled herself up.   
  
"Okay," he said as if nothing had happened. "Eliva beans..."  
=============================================  
They walked the lonely streets of Coruscant with Lenore's groceries. Luke held her hand gently as if it were the most natural thing in the galaxy.  
  
In Lenore's kitchen he helped her put her groceries away. "Are you working tonight?" he asked.   
  
Tonight? It took her a moment to realize it was early morning. She nodded. "Yeah, I'm done at the medcenter at 1800h, and then I've got to be at the pub at 1900h."   
  
"When's your lunch break?"   
  
She paused to think. "Um... Eleven fourty-five."  
  
"Okay if I meet you?" Luke asked.  
  
"Sure." she answered. They finished the groceries in silence.   
  
Luke handed her the last empty bag. "Do you have to be there early?"   
  
"Yes, 0645h. Another busy day..."   
  
Luke smiled. "Well then, I'll go away and let you go to bed." They left the kitchen and walked toward the door.   
  
Lenore walked him out into the hallway and towards the lift. While they waited he took her in his arms again.   
  
"Luke?"  
  
"Hm?"   
  
"Do you have a comnumber I can reach you at?"  
  
Without releasing her, Luke rattled off the numbers of his comlink. The lift arrived, and Luke kissed her goodnight before leaving.  
  
When he was gone Lenore stumbled dreamily back into her bedroom. She grabbed a piece of paper off her dressing table and scribbled down the numbers. When she finished she lay back on her bed and smiled.   
  
She was asleep within minutes.   
============================================  
Drip.  
  
Drip.  
  
Drip.  
  
Lenore's first concious thought was that the cold milky substance dripping on her face tasted rather good when it ran down into the corner of her mouth. It was quite a while before she fully realised the possible implications of something dripping on her face.  
  
She jerked awake and sat bolt upright in the bed. Leia Organa Solo stood over her, holding out the melting carton of ice-cream that had been donated to her last night.  
  
"Hi." she said.   
  
"Um... hello..." Lenore began. "What are you doing here?"  
  
Leia smiled. "Came to return your ice-cream. It was very good, thank you." Leia left the bedroom and headed towards the kitchen. Lenore followed.  
  
"How did you get in?" Lenore asked.  
  
"You left the door unlocked. Not very smart when you're living in this district of Coruscant. Tell me something, do you always sleep fully clothed?" Leia asked as she put the ice-cream in the refrigerator.  
  
Lenore looked down for the first time and realised she'd forgotten to change. She blushed. "Well, no, I was out kind of late."   
  
Leia grinned. "So Han tells me. Did Luke stay long after Han stole your ice-cream?"  
  
"We, uh, we went to the grocery store."  
  
Leia gave her a puzzled look. "The grocery store? What possessed you to do that in the middle of the night?"  
  
"I don't know, Luke said it would be fun."   
  
Leia laughed. "I don't pretend to understand him."  
  
Lenore yawned and stretched. As she leaned back she happened to notice the chrono on the wall. It read 1015h.  
  
She let out a curse. "I'm late for work!"  
  
"No you're not." Leia said calmly, sipping from a mug of coffiene.  
  
"I was supposed to be there three and a half hours ago!"  
  
"Relax! I called you in sick."  
  
"LEIA!" she exclaimed.   
  
"Hey, I came in at seven and you were sound asleep and your alarm was going full-blast. I figured you needed your sleep, so I called you in sick. Don't get to excited, you have to be in at 1300h."  
  
Lenore collapsed into a chair and sighed. "Thanks-- I suppose."   
  
"You're welcome." Leia took another sip of her drink. "Oh! I forgot, while you were sleeping some delivery people brought you a present."   
  
Lenore was puzzled. "What do you mean, a present?"  
  
Leia pointed towards the door. "I didn't know where you wanted to put it, so I just had them drop it there."  
  
Lenore got up and crossed the room to the holovid. She reached behind and made sure the proper power connections had been made, and then hit the 'ON' button. A popular soap opera sprang to life.   
  
"It works!" She yelled.  
  
"Yay!" Leia said.  
  
Lenore searched the room for the remote control. She found it lodged between two cushions on her couch. Running back to the holovid, she adjusted it so it could be easily seen from the couch. She then bounded back to the couch and took a seat next to Leia.  
  
Leia took the remote from her and began flipping through the different stations. She stopped at a certain station. "I love watching how stupid these people can be."   
  
"What is it?" Lenore asked.   
  
"You know, one of those talk shows where they have different people come on and 'talk' about their problems, usually sexually-related problems."  
  
"Oh! Yes I remember these. My sister was on one once, at home."  
  
"You're kidding!" Leia exclaimed.  
  
Lenore smiled. "No, my sister had a boyfriend and she cheated on him. The boyfriend decided he wanted his fifteen minutes of fame, so he called up one of the talk shows and told them about it. In the end my sister ended up getting back together with the boyfriend. Didn't do much for business, but it was fun."  
  
"Did they stay together?"  
  
"No, they broke up six weeks later. He was cheating on her the whole time."  
  
Leia laughed. "What business didn't it help?"   
  
"My father's. He owned several Cetbal mines and he left them to my brother when he died."   
  
"I'm sorry." Leia said.  
  
"For what?" asked Lenore.  
  
"Your father."  
  
"Why? Everybody dies sooner or later."  
  
They remained silent for a long time, laughing occasionally at the stupidity of the subjects of the talk show.   
  
Eventually the show ended. Leia flipped it off. Lenore stretched again. "What are you doing for lunch?" Leia asked.  
  
Lenore's eyes got wide and she slapped a hand over her mouth. "I forgot! I'm supposed to meet Luke! He's going to be waiting for me at the medcenter."  
  
"Really? You didn't tell me you had a date." Leia said teasingly.   
  
"It's not a date! We're just meeting for lunch!"   
  
"Sure y'are. I'll bet y'are."  
  
"Really! It's not a date!" Lenore said, a bit too defensivly.   
  
Leia smiled. "I'm just teasing you. I'll call Luke and tell him to meet you here."   
  
"No, that's okay, I'll call him myself."   
  
"If you want, I'll even be nice and disappear." suggested Leia.  
  
Lenore looked at her, confused. "Why would I want you to leave? You can stay, if you want."   
  
"I just thought you might want a bit of privacy, that's all." said Leia, rising to leave.   
  
"To do what, eat?"   
  
Leia just smiled.   
  
"LEIA! What are you suggesting?"  
  
"Nothing, nothing at all, I didn't say a word." she said sweetly. "What's on your mind, Lenore dear?"  
  
Lenore glared. "You know what you meant."   
  
Leia laughed. "I'll be on my way. Call me, k?"   
  
"Yeah, sure, bye." Lenore called after her.  
======================================================  
The months flew by. Lenore spent almost every evening with Luke. He became her best friend. Every day after one of her jobs she would hurry over to his apartment, or him to hers, to talk.   
  
One evening about 2000h they were sitting on his couch watching the holovid when her comlink beeped. "Yes?" she said into it.  
  
"Doctor, one of your patients is in here, in labour, we need you as soon as possible." said the droid.  
  
"Okay, I'll be right there." she said, switching it off.   
  
"It's Leia." Luke said calmly.  
  
Lenore didn't even ask. She'd gotten use to his Force abilities over the months and had given up trying to understand. "Do you want to come?" she asked.   
  
"And do what?" he asked.  
  
"Deliver the babies. That's something I haven't quite mastered yet." she joked.  
  
He laughed. "Oh boy! Count me in!"   
  
"Seriously. You could stick around, maybe sit on Han if he gets too nervous." Lenore said.  
  
"Okay, I guess." Luke said. "Let me put my shoes on."   
  
Fifteen minutes later Lenore walked into Leia's birth suite at the medcenter. "Hey, Leia!" she said enthusiastically. "How are you feeling?"  
  
Leia stared at her. "How the hell do you think I feel?"   
  
"Good point." Lenore said, beginning her examinatioins. "Hello Han."  
  
Han looked more nervous than anybody she'd ever seen. "Hi." he said quickly.  
========================================================  
"Push, Leia!" Lenore said for the umpteenth time that evening.  
  
"I AM!" Leia yelled.  
  
"It's okay, Leia, really, we can get through this!" Han said.   
  
"Who's 'we'? I'm the one working here!" yelled Leia.   
  
"Leia, I need you to--" Lenore began.  
  
"If you tell me to push one more time I will personally mutilate you!" said Leia maliciously.  
  
"Alright, alright! Just once more, and I think we'll have the first one out." replied Lenore.   
  
Leia tightened her grip on Han's hand, took a deep breath, and pushed with all her might. A wail escaped her. Almost...  
  
From the business end of the bed a small cry. "It's a girl!" exclaimed Lenore.  
  
Han squeezed Leia's hand. She glanced at him. There were tears in his eyes. "A girl, Leia!"   
  
Before she could reply another contraction seized her. "Alright, on three, take a deep breath and push, just like the last one..." Lenore began. "One...Two...Three!"  
  
Leia complied. Ten minutes later another infant wailed.   
  
Time seemed to slow, and tears of joy sprang to Leia's eyes as she held her babies for the first  
time.  
==============================================================  
Two weeks later, Lenore hurried to Luke's apartment after work. Leia was still on maternity leave, so Luke and Lenore had agreed-- reluctantly-- to fill in at a ritzy diplomatic reception. Lenore was definatly not looking forward to this. The only good things coming from it was a new dress and time with her love.  
  
She found him in the front room of his apartment, sitting on the sofa listening to music. "Hey Luke!" she exclaimed.  
  
He turned slowly. "Hey," he said.  
  
"Sorry I'm a little late. I delivered a premature baby this afternoon--" she paused to kiss his forehead-- "and then at the last minute a patient calls up just positive she's going to deliver. After that was sorted out I had to just run to catch my train but of course I missed it. I had to stand around and wait for another----"  
  
"Let's not go." Luke interrupted.  
  
The abrupt change of topic threw her off guard. "What?" she asked.  
  
"To this whatever you call it tonight. Let's not go." he repeated.  
  
"But Luke, we promised your sister we'd go." Lenore said, confused. What was bugging him tonight? "What do you suggest we do otherwise?"  
  
Luke stayed quiet.  
  
Lenore sat on the couch next to him and rested her head on his shoulder. "What's wrong?"  
  
"Marry me." he said, bluntly.  
  
She sat up and looked him in the eyes. "What did you say?"  
  
"Marry me. Now."  
  
Lenore sat speechless for a few eternal seconds. "Now?" she said after her voice returned.  
  
He turned and focused on something in the distance. "Yeah, now. Let's just... I don't know, let's just do it."  
  
"Luke, I-- are you sure this is what you want to do?"  
  
He looked right at her. "Yes. Yes. I'm positive."  
  
It was Lenore's turn to look away. After a few moments she answered him.  
  
"Okay, let's go."  
**************************************************  
  
Sorry it took so long to post this. I promise the next section will be out soon, so keep looking! Thank you for reading, now write a review!  
  
Copyright 2000 by May Solo. 


End file.
